Neolithic Anatolia and Central Europe: disentangling environmental impacts from diet isotope studies

The aim of this thesis was to reconstruct dietary choices for Neolithic populations in Anatolia and Poland using stable isotope analysis, and to examine the extent to which local environmental factors in these regions affected the isotope values recorded from skeletal collagen. In total 278 new δ13C and δ15N values were obtained from human and animal bone collagen for this project (161 from the site of Osłonki 1, 59 from Barçin Höyük, and 58 from the site of Aktopraklık). From an environmental perspective, the multi-level statistical modelling highlighted a clear relationship with δ13C and δ15N and moisture availability, which was most evident through the proxy of mean annual precipitation (MAP). The modelling highlighted a 0.4‰ decrease in δ13C for every 100mm decrease of MAP, and a 0.5‰ decrease in δ15N for every 100mm decrease between sites. The δ13C and δ15N values for the North-West Anatolian sites are the first dietary isotopic studies for the Neolithic period in the region. The values are largely commensurate with the dietary isotope studies from Neolithic sites located on the Central Anatolian plateau, with the caveat that the North-West sites perhaps had a greater reliance on herbivore protein (instead of plant protein) than their plateau counterparts. The dietary reconstruction of Osłonki 1 uncovered a rather unexpected outcome – namely that status exerted a degree of control over human diet. If this is indeed true it will be the earliest evidence in Europe of a distinct relationship between the socioeconomic status and diet of an individual.